


Here Comes the Sun, Look to the Horizon and Weep; For the Light is Here

by ObliqueOptimism



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Sparrow Academy (Umbrella Academy), Gen, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other, Post-Season/Series 02, Sober Klaus Hargreeves, Unreliable Narrator, a lot of cats
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:08:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26640424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ObliqueOptimism/pseuds/ObliqueOptimism
Summary: Axel went back to the house, gathered all of his cats in a pet carrier, grabbed the Briefcase he took from The Barn and went to the one place he figured the Commission wouldn’t look for him.April 2nd, 2019.
Relationships: Axel/Klaus Hargreeves
Comments: 31
Kudos: 112





	Here Comes the Sun, Look to the Horizon and Weep; For the Light is Here

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TotallynotRemus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TotallynotRemus/gifts).
  * Inspired by [älska, mwah](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26211355) by [felldownthelist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/felldownthelist/pseuds/felldownthelist). 
  * Inspired by [don't ever let me ever let you go](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26285368) by [holy_smokes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/holy_smokes/pseuds/holy_smokes). 



> well listen i read the other fics, i fell in love with the idea and started writing my own
> 
> set in some world where they get back to 2019 and it's almost how they left it (academy still standing?) and no sparrow academy because ???? its my birthday and i do what i want

Axel went back to the house, gathered all of his cats in a pet carrier, grabbed the Briefcase he took from The Barn and went to the one place he figured the Commission wouldn’t look for him.

April 2nd, 2019.

The next thing he did was find a place that allowed cats while also being pre-furnished. He let them out of the carrier and smiled slightly, watching them explore their new home. His new home. 

His first home without his brothers.

Instead of focusing on that, Axel went out and bought some essentials. Food, change of clothes, cat food, cat toys, a cat tree. That night he fell asleep in his new bed, surrounded by his cats.

The next few weeks were Axel getting the lay of the land. Figuring out more about where he moved, how his era worked, figuring out the politics both of the world and of the streets he moved to, playing with his cats and then getting leashes for them and teaching them how to behave on them and starting to take them on short walks.

Axel did get a few looks on the street while he took them on walks, he knew cats often didn’t go on walks like dogs but he thought that they needed fresh air and he’d read some books about how to raise cats and they suggested making sure your pets knew the world was bigger than their house. So he took them on walks.

It was while he was walking his cats that his life changed once more. If someone had asked Axel if he wanted his life to change some more he would have said _no_ for what else did the world have to take from him? In his experience change had always led to heartbreak. When his parents died and he took over watching out for his two younger brothers, when they joined the Commission and had to learn how to kill, the first time they had to kill, when Oscar was taken from him so suddenly, when Axel was forced to kill Otto with his bare hands, feeling the life leave him. 

Change was never good.

But then he saw someone he thought he’d never see again. An ex-coworker standing over a man, gun in hand. Axel let out a sharp whistle, getting Tango’s attention. Keeping a hold of the leashes, he pulled out a knife from his pocket and threw it. While he no longer wanted to kill, he didn’t want Tango to finish his job. The knife landed true enough and hit him in the neck. Tango stumbled some, dropping the gun. The man he’d been standing over backed up quickly.

Getting closer as fast as he could without tripping over his pets, he punched Tango on the other side of the neck before grabbing the knife and _pulling_. Tango stumbled back and fell. 

Wiping the blood from his knife against his pants, Axel then put it away once more and checked on his cats. They all seemed to be fine, some jumping over others while a few went to check out Tango or the man. He smiled down at them. 

Then he turned to the man and held out his hand to help him up.

And that’s when he realized he knew the man. He was in The Barn that day. That explained why Tango was after him. Tango was a fanatic about The Handler. She had her own following in the Commission and it made sense that some of them would be looking for revenge

When the man reached out and grasped Axel’s hand, Axel noticed he had writing on the palm like those in the van had. They’d told him about their prophet. A man described very much like this one. Axel let out an amused snort of the idea of a time traveler going back and starting a cult with their knowledge of the future. Not a bad idea. An idea that normally would get the Commision after you though.

“I like your cats,” he said, eyes darting around the alley as if he saw something Axel didn’t. 

“They’re good cats,” Axel replied. “Are you hurt?”

He shook his head, finally looking at Axel, “Thanks to you. Really thought I’d be making a visit to God again.”

Axel frowned at the _again_. Had he died before? Was that how he had become a prophet? Or was this part of his spiel he’d tell his followers? He hadn’t asked the cult much about their religion, just listened as they told him about it and then thanked them for the ride when they dropped him off at the house. 

“You need to know self-defence,” Axel found himself saying, surprised that he was. Normally he would have just moved on but the green eyes of the stranger struck him somehow. He wasn’t the best with feelings, not after the life he had, but he stirred something in Axel, something _protective_. “Tango was a follower of The Handler. More may come.”

“Ah,” the man frowned and stepped back slightly. “That explains the ghosts.”

“Come, I’ll teach you to fight.” Axel would probably have to stop at home and drop off the cats before taking this man somewhere to learn some self-defence. 

He raised his eyebrows, “What?”

“I may not be around the next time,” Axel explained. The man was getting a bruise on his cheek. Axel had an overwhelming urge to tuck his hair behind his ear and caress the bruise.

“I know how to fight,” the man sighed. Then he paused, “Wait, you _may_ not-- what does that mean?”

One of his cats started to climb up his pant leg. Axel almost winced at the sudden small claws digging into his leg. Instead he gave the man a disbelieving look. He hadn’t looked like he was fighting back _at all_. “Come. I’ll teach you.”

He started to walk away then, the one cat on his leg jumping down when he moved. He didn’t even have to look back to make sure the man was following him. He heard the footsteps and the loud sigh before he started talking, “And _where_ are we going? Also you just _murdered_ a man. I mean thanks for saving me and all, but still-- _murder_ and you’re just going to leave the body? I can help dispose of it but shouldn’t that be priority _numeral uno_ instead of like, teaching me to fight? Which _I do know how to do_ , thank you.”

“We are taking my cats home,” Axel said. It was strange how much this man talked. He knew that some people were very vocal, but most people didn’t talk to him. Not like this man did, as if they were already friends. Most were standoffish with him, wary in his presence. That was part of why he loved his cats. They didn’t stand away, they weren’t afraid of him. His brothers hadn’t been afraid of him, but they were just as quiet as he was. They didn’t need to fill the air with talk. 

But the man had a pretty voice to go with his pretty eyes.

“Oh lovely, I get to follow a murderer to his home where he lives with a hoard of cats. This is perfect. If my brother was here he’d be bitching at me about following you to your murder den. _But!_ He went and left me so now he can’t judge my choices. So that’s on him. If he didn’t want me following you home he shouldn’t have left, right? I can blame him when you snap and kill me,” the man said, now walking beside Axel.

“I won’t kill you,” Axel said. “You’re very pretty.”

The man pointed at his chest, “Me?”

Axel nodded.

He then looked Axel up and down and smirked slowly, “Ah. I see. Am I to thank you for saving me at yours?” He was nearly purring as he spoke. “Teaching me to _fight_. I see how it is.” He waggled his eyebrows.

“You do not,” Axel frowned. “No sex today. Maybe later. Today is self-defence lessons.”

“Not even sex to thank you for saving me?” he asked, giving a wink. His voice lowered some, “I’d be dead without you, sir. Let me thank you?”

“Axel.”

“Huh?”

“My name is Axel. Not sir,” Axel said, turning onto his street.

“Well I’m Klaus. It’s lovely to be saved by you, Axel,” Klaus said. “But honestly, we can skip the self-defence if you want and go straight to the sex. You seem strong and capable. Really put me in my place.” His eyes were dark with want.

“I will put you in your place. And it’s self-defence today,” Axel repeated, going to his door and unlocking it. Klaus followed him inside without any hesitation. Possibly foolish of him. He knew Axel was a murderer, as he’d stated and seen. And yet he was propositioning him for sex. Klaus seemed like a strange man. 

As Axel took the leads off his cats, Klaus looked around and was smiling brightly. It was a very good smile. “You should put up those shelves. Y’know?” Klaus gestured to the walls, “For the cats.” Once free, the cats all went about their business. Some of them going to the toys, the cat tree, the water. Some were investigating Klaus. He picked one up and started petting it, talking to it about how cute it was. 

Axel nodded to himself. Yes, Klaus with his cats was a very good image. One he’d like to see again.

“Does she have a name?” Klaus turned, cat in hand. 

“Not all have names yet. Her’s is Dame Isadora Sophia Galina of Valhalla.”

Klaus gasped, clearly delighted. He held her close to his chest and smiled big and bright towards Axel, his eyes shining. Axel swallowed, feeling his breath taken away at how happy Klaus looked in that moment. The sunlight from a window was beaming down on him making him glow. He pointed to a cat at Axel’s feet, “That one?”

Axel picked up the cat, “No name.”

“Can I name them?” Klaus asked. Axel gave a nod and then Klaus giggled. “How about Fork? Dame Isadora Sophia Galina of Valhalla and _Fork_.”

Axel held the cat up and looked in his face, “He is Fork.” Walking over to Klaus, he gently moved Klaus’s arms so he had room for both Isadora and Fork before putting Fork in his grasp. Axel then did as he wanted earlier and tucked Klaus’s hair behind his ear before gently caressing the bruise. “Self-defense soon. Lunch first.” 

Klaus followed Axel into his kitchen, still holding the two cats. Axel put on his apron and turned to his fridge to see what all he had. Before he could choose anything, Klaus spoke up, “I should stay away from dairy.”

Axel immediately started making plans to go buy non-dairy items that night. Almond milk and other lactose free foods. Axel had some almond milk at a local coffee shop that prided itself in being organic and lactose free, gluten free, and other similar themes. The coffee was expensive but Axel had yet to find any that tasted better. 

He made them some sandwiches and then after looking at Klaus more, he went to his cupboards and grabbed his package of store bought cookies and handed them over. He was very skinny. Axel would help him gain some muscle so he could put to use the self-defence that Axel was going to teach him. He wouldn’t let someone like Tango get the upper hand against Klaus again.

Klaus was tearing small amounts of the meat from the sandwich out and hand feeding the cats that were now in his lap. “So you’re Commission?”

“I’m no longer,” Axel answered simply. He hadn’t officially quit, but he had gotten a letter from Herb that he had access to his brother’s payments as well as his own and then an added bonus for killing The Handler so he suspected they were aware he wasn’t coming back. 

“Neat! Did you ever work with my brother Five? Got any good office gossip I can blackmail him with?” Klaus leaned forward, a playful smirk on his face as he absently ate cookies.

That explained why Klaus had been in The Barn. He was one of the Hargreeves. Axel was suddenly very glad he’d never managed to kill any of them as per his orders. It would be doubtful that Klaus would have forgave that. Axel had mostly forgiven himself for what he did to Otto. He hadn’t been in control. It was such a strange thing as he was always in control of most situations. But that week was one from hell, orchestrated by The Handler. He blamed Allison Hargreeves as much as he blamed himself for Otto’s death. They were equal parts the cause. Axel vaguely respected her for in the moment, trying to save her life, she used her power in a very intelligent way. 

It didn’t stop the nightmares of Axel’s hands around his brother’s neck though.

“I once saw your brother spill coffee on himself and then he disappeared before anyone else saw it,” Axel said after a moment. It maybe isn’t the gossip Klaus had been looking for but he and his brothers had kept to themselves as best they could. And as far as Axel could tell, so had Number Five. 

Klaus tilted his head and gave a thoughtful little hum, “I can work with that.”

Axel knew all the Hargreeves had powers of some sort. He knew that some were more powerful than others but he wasn’t aware what each could do. He’d gotten first hand experience with Allison Hargreeves’s and he knew Number Five’s. He thought back to when Klaus mentioned ghosts, mentioned visiting God. His palms were tattoo’d like the cult. Or was it like a ouija board? He seemed very okay with the idea of death and murder. How much was it draped around him? 

In the light from the windows, a rainbow from the light catcher over the sink caressing the bruise on his cheek, smiling down at Isadora while Fork climbed up to his shoulder, Klaus looked anything but draped in death. He looked like a beautiful fae creature who had stumbled into Axel’s kitchen.

“Come, it’s time,” Axel said, reaching out to take Klaus’s hand, ready to help him stand up once more. 

Klaus took his hand and held on tightly, “Time for what?”

“Lessons,” Axel answered. He turned and looked at his living room. He could move furniture and teach Klaus here, but he was worried about the cats. They should go to a gym somewhere. He frowned some, unsure of where any were. He’d kept up his workout routine but it was one that could be done anywhere he found himself. A gym, a bedroom, a cell. It didn’t matter where he was, he could do his workout. But this was teaching Klaus how to do self defence. They’d need somewhere with the space for Klaus to learn how to throw a punch. 

Maybe a park.

Klaus was pouting but still followed Axel out onto the street. Once there Klaus linked arms with him and gave him a small and pretty smile. A wink and a chuckle. “Where are these lessons? Somewhere romantic? Somewhere _sexy?_ ”

“A park. A gym would be better,” Axel said. 

“Ah, but a park is more romantic,” Klaus chuckled. 

“I do not know any gyms,” Axel announced with a frown. He should know where some are. He would look for one as soon as he could, planning more than one lesson with Klaus. He wouldn’t learn how to fight Tango in one day, it would take multiple days. Weeks. Months.

Klaus let out a thoughtful noise, “I know one. Not far from here. Shall I lead us, Axel? It won’t be romantic and it's nothing special. But you don’t need to have a membership to get inside.”

Axel nodded.

Klaus kept up a mostly one-sided conversation on their way, chatting to Axel. He didn’t seem to mind that Axel didn’t hold up his end of the conversation. Axel had already spoken more than he had in months. In years. He and his brothers rarely had to speak their mind, just able to move as a unit and _know_. But he enjoyed talking with Klaus. Klaus called him _the strong silent type_ and _my knight in shining armor_ and _a teacher who can give me detention if I’m bad_.

They arrived at the gym. A few of the guys seemed to recognize Klaus, a few waved, one of them said, “He’s not here!”

“I’m not here for him!” Klaus yelled back. He cackled, “Got myself a personal trainer.”

The guy let out an amused snort and waved his hand, dismissing them.

“My brother Diego works here? I think he still works here. Has a few fights. He also used to full time live in the boiler room and now only sometimes stays there when he is annoyed with us at the Academy. Needs to brood in his boiler room like a baby,” Klaus explained.

Axel nodded. He knew Diego. He was the first Hargreeves he tried to kill. He was certain now that The Handler framed him for Oscar’s death. It would be easy enough to frame him for it. He wasn’t sure about the Academy Klaus spoke of, but he’d learn about it soon enough. 

They found a corner and Klaus once again said, “I do know how to fight, you know. I wasn’t lying.”

“Show me,” Axel said. He didn’t doubt that Klaus knew _something_ , not based on what he knew about his siblings. But he had lost the fight against Tango and Axel didn’t want Klaus to lose another fight against any Commission agent looking for revenge.

Axel started slowly, trying to figure out what Klaus knew. Klaus was smiling and laughing at Axel, not taking it nearly as seriously as he should. But Axel was teaching Klaus this to save his life. This wasn’t something he should take lightly. Teacher maybe would have to give him detention. Only he wouldn’t secretly enjoy it. Axel could make sure it was a real punishment and not a sexy time like Klaus seemed to want. 

_“Show me,”_ Axel said, repeating himself after a few minutes.

Klaus rolled his eyes, “You want me to make you proud?”

“Yes,” Axel replied. He spoke quietly, making sure Klaus had to pay attention and listen, “Do you want to make me proud, Klaus?” He watched as Klaus swallowed and gave a small nod. “Show me.”

“Yeah, yeah. Okay,” Klaus said, voice weak. But Axel saw that Klaus was actually trying this time. His movements were more sure, his feet more secure in his stance. He did know how to fight. His style was such an odd mix that Axel found himself having trouble figuring out what Klaus would do next. Some of it was classical training, some was dirty and underhanded, and then there were some military moves thrown in. It was refreshing and interesting and made Axel want to know how Klaus learned to fight like he did.

After a number of minutes, Axel did beat Klaus, both of them sweating and breathing heavy. Axel was standing over Klaus, holding him down and Klaus’s eyes were dark with want again. He twisted in Axel’s grasp and gasped, asking, “Did I make you proud, Axel?”

Axel graced Klaus with a smile, _”Yes.”_ He helped Klaus stand for the third time that day, holding out his hand. He checked Klaus over for injuries, making sure he hadn’t pulled any muscles and then said, “Again.”

Klaus licked his lips and nodded, “Yes sir.”

As they left the gym hours later, Klaus was leaning heavily on Axel and giggling loosely, “I haven’t been this sore in _a while_.” He snorted, “And to think its not because of some wild sex. God, Axel, I feel muscles I didn’t even know I had.”

“You did very good,” Axel said, making sure there was some warmth in his voice. “I am very proud of you.”

Klaus let out some breathy giggles again, “Told you I could fight.”

“You did. And you improved today,” Axel said. “You learned new skills. It’s very good.”

“Do I get a _reward_ for learning new skills?” Klaus asked, voice faux-innocent. 

“Hm,” Axel felt a smile twitch at his lips. “We shall see.”

“Ooh! That means a _yes_ ,” Klaus clapped. 

Axel asked where Klaus lived, wanting to make sure he got home safe. If another agent found him now he would be too tired to fight them off. He wondered how hard Klaus had fought Tango, if at all. He hoped Klaus had put up some sort of fight, not just giving in. After what happened at the gym, Axel figured Klaus hadn’t given the fight with Tango his all, but he still hoped that there was some self defence. 

Klaus was once more taking the lead in the conversation as he led Axel to his home. This Academy he heard some of. Eventually they arrived at a building that was swallowing up buildings near it, taking up the whole city block. Umbrellas that matched Klaus’s tattoo were proudly displayed.

The Academy.

It was foreboding.

Most of the windows were dark, clearly shut off and sitting empty. Not a place for someone as lively and bright as Klaus. Still, Axel walked Klaus to the door and then gently kissed the bruise on his cheek. He turned then, starting to walk away, knowing Klaus was home safe.

“My reward?” Klaus yelled out at his retreating back. 

Axel turned and smiled, “I let you name Fork.”

**Author's Note:**

> cowgaykermit @ tumblr


End file.
